bush-bound: A scholarship initiative will soon allow a number of medical students to get a taste of practising medicine in rural and regional areas. Photo: Fairfax
FOUR medical students are heading to the northern region, thanks to scholarships allowing them to undertake placement in rural and regional areas.
The students will work in Narrabri, Moree and Guyra under the Bush Bursary and Country Women’s Association (CWA) scholarships, administered by the NSW Rural Doctors Network.
The scholarships provide $3000 to help the students meet their education costs for a year, during which they spend two weeks in a regional area to experience work and life in a rural community.
As well as spending time with local GPs and other medical specialists, the scholarship recipients also visit allied and community health services, including the pharmacy, aged care facility and Aboriginal Medical Service.
The placements are usually undertaken in December or January.
The four students headed to the northern region are among 16 scholarship recipients from the universities of Wollongong, Sydney, NSW, Western Sydney, New England and the Australian National University, who are headed to regional towns across the state.
“Prior to this placement, I was interested in rural practice but didn’t know much about it,” 2011 Bush Bursary recipient Hannah Lee, who completed her placement in Goulburn, said.
“Now I feel I’ve seen and experienced practising in such a setting and it is very appealing.
“I am definitely more certain that I’d like to practise in a rural area.”